Business

Muscat: For the first time, the Dubai Mercantile Exchange's flagship crude oil futures contract, DME Oman, is to be included in a new United State-based commodities fund which will give investors exposure to Asia's rapidly growing demand for raw materials.

The inclusion of Dubai Mercantile Exchange Oman in the United States Asian Commodities Basket Fund (USACBF) recognises the critical benchmarking role DME is playing in the expansion of the East of Suez markets, providing transparent price discovery and reflecting the economics of the Asian region like no other crude oil futures contract.

Significant milestoneDME's Chief Executive, Chris Fix said: "Dubai Mercantile Exchange Oman's inclusion in, we believe, its first fund is a significant milestone and ringing endorsement of the relevance of DME to the growth of the Asian oil market. Like us, this fund is betting on the rapid growth of crude oil consumption in countries like China and India and I feel certain that over time other funds will follow the lead this launch sets."

"We're already seeing 40 per cent of the crude oil traded on the DME going to China and are confident that as our market matures, volumes will continue to build, aided by DME Oman's inclusion in more Exchange Traded Funds," he added.

"This fund being listed in the US will make trading in Dubai Mercantile Exchange Oman truly global like never before, opening up access to the US investor community for the first time," he further said. The USACBF will be listed on NYSE Arca and own futures in those commodities where China, Japan and India combined account for at least 10 per cent of global demand and are likely to be net importers.